The east coast of Florida has long been a destination for Spring breakers, vacationers escaping the cold in the more northern states, and those in retirement, as well as a playground for the wealthy. This mix of people and plans makes for a vibrant community up and down the east coast of the south of Florida. We decided in late May to spend three days exploring the area, doing one day each in the cities and beaches of Ft. Lauderdale, Palm Beach/West Palm Beach and South Beach, Miami.
The weather in the south of Florida is considered sub-tropical, which is to say it is hot (around 80 degrees Fahrenheit) generally from December to May and then in the summer months it rains quite a lot. We were there in the last week of May, and so were toeing the line weather wise. On our first night, we jumped into an Uber just as dark clouds rolled in…and it was in the nick of time. Suddenly a torrential downpour surrounded us as our car carefully wove through the streets back to our hotel. Then it stopped, and the rest of our week we lucked out with sunny skies with temperatures around the 90s.
Ft. Lauderdale
On our first day, after checking in to our hotel, we headed out to Las Olas Boulevard and an evening by the River Walk. First we did spend some time at the hotel’s pool.
The Westin Hotel and Beach Resort worked out great for this trip, as it’s centrally located in Ft. Lauderdale, has a skywalk directly to the beach, and as a 4-star hotel and beach resort, it also had the amenities we like. I enjoyed free morning yoga sessions on the beach, quick 30-minute workouts at the gym with an oceanside view, getting breakfast at the Starbucks on premises or their grab-and-go café and, of course, hanging out at the pool and getting drinks and great food at the poolside Waves Bar and Grill.
Las Olas Boulevard
We changed and took a 10 minute Uber ride over to Las Olas Boulevard, located by the intercoastal waterways of Ft. Lauderdale and loaded with restaurants, shops, art galleries and more. We walked a bit down the boulevard to explore, then got dinner at Cuba Libre for some great Ropa Vieja and Cuban vibes. Unfortunately, at the time of writing this article the website announced they have closed the restaurant and sold the property, but there is so much more at Las Olas to see and do. For more information, see Las Olas Boulevard.
After dinner, we got gelato at Gelato & Co. (I can recommend their Tiramisu flavor) and headed over to the Riverwalk, a palm-tree lined scenic path over a mile long that winds along the New River.
We entered at Lauraward Park, at the end of Federal Hwy, near the Stranahan House. We didn’t have time to visit, but the Stranahan House is Ft. Lauderdale’s oldest surviving home and a museum that tells the story of life back at the founding of Ft. Lauderdale and is worth a visit. For information on hours and guided tours see Stranahan House. There are more places to stop for a bite or a drink along the riverwalk, and you also get a view of the surrounding luxury condos and yachts that fill the Ft. Lauderdale intercoastal waterways.
Before dinner, we managed to squeeze in a ride along the waterways in a Water Taxi.
There are stops all along the river, and for a reasonable $40 ticket purchased in advance you get an all day pass and can ride the Water Taxi upstream or downstream and get on or off at any of the destination points along its path.
Your ride will also be narrated, and our guide was happy to point out celebrity houses and where yachts that were purchased for upwards of $70 million were docked.
It was a nice introduction to this area of Ft. Lauderdale, commonly known as “America’s Venice”, and see the older and newer models of houses being built along its shores.
For information on routes schedules, fees etc. visit Water Taxi.
Ft. Lauderdale at Night
We were celebrating my birthday that night, so we got back to the hotel, changed and headed for before-dinner cocktails at the Nube rooftop.
Located at the top of the Hilton hotel, it provides unparalleled views of the beach and Atlantic ocean. Note that reservations are required, and there is a dress code as well as a $50 minimum but no fee at the door.
Then we walked a few short blocks north for dinner at Trulucks Ocean’s Finest Seafood & Crab. The seafood was fantastic of course, but I was most impressed with our server who attended to our every need, answered any questions and generally let us know that their mission that night was to make sure we fully enjoyed our meal and drinks.
Palm Beach/West Palm Beach
On our second day we took an Uber one hour north to visit the Palm Beach and West Palm Beach area. We were dropped off at the Clock Tower on Worth Avenue. The clock tower is a beloved symbol of Palm Beach and heads the luxury goods-laden Worth Avenue.
A walk down Worth Avenue is an opportunity to window shop in a city where some of the wealthiest individuals in the world come to live, visit or shop.
You’ll find stores like Gucci, Versace, Ralph Lauren and many more. Strolling down this avenue, it seemed to me like even the air had a smell of wealth to it.
The Breakers
We traced our steps back to the Clock Tower, then walked about 20 minutes north up S. Ocean Boulevard, looking out over the deep blue waters and pristinely maintained shoreline to our right.
Taking a left on Barton Avenue and walking a bit along N. County Road took us right to The Breakers, Palm Beach, a stunning luxury resort hotel with room rates averaging $1,000 per night.
Visitors are allowed through the visitor entrance (there is also a club member entrance). We took a look inside at the lobbies and hotel restaurants, all put together with exquisite taste.
We got a bite to eat at the Seafood Bar and had perhaps the best burgers we’ve ever eaten in our lives, but I doubt there is anything on the menu that isn’t top notch dining.
Henry Morrison Flagler Museum
Back in the day, the wealthy of America would come to the Breakers at Palm Beach for their vacation and if they were lucky enough to know the Flaglers and get invited to Whitehall, they would get in a vehicle and be driven over to the mansion in what was perhaps a 5 minute drive. This is one of the many interesting facts we learned on our tour of the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum.
For us, it was a 10 minute walk across the street from The Breakers. On that hot afternoon after lunch, with temperatures upwards of 90 degrees Fahrenheit, spending a few cool hours in the air-conditioned museum was a welcome break, but we were also surprised to learn so much about the Gilded Age from our very knowledgeable tour guide.
Henry Morrison Flagler became a partner of Standard Oil in 1867 and was one of the wealthiest men of his time, with a personal fortune of over $900 million by 1890. He came to Florida, and recognizing its potential, was the first to build holiday resorts there and is credited with founding the cities of Palm Beach and Miami.
Whitehall was a mansion he built and gifted to his third wife, Mary Lily Kenan. It’s now a National Historic Landmark and museum, showcasing the furnishing, décor and lifestyle of the rich during what is called The Gilded Age.
Here is a picture of one of the grand dining rooms.
His wife would often entertain ladies at the mansion, who would gather in music rooms like this one to listen to piano and harp concerts.
There are concerts and programs held at the museum each year during the season, for more information on this, and for opening hours etc. see Flagler Museum.
West Palm Beach
From the museum we took a quick Uber ride over to West Palm Beach, asking to be dropped off at Clematis Street. Downtown West Palm Beach is more developed and residential, with a convention center, hotels and more reasonably priced dining.
Clematis Street
This street in particular is lined with hip restaurants, bars and a lively evening dining scene. We were there around 5pm, and it seemed somewhat empty and quiet to us. It happened to be Thursday night, and there was free live music being played at Clematis Splash Park, so we hung out there for a while, enjoying the cooling evening breezes that were starting to waft in.
Then around 7pm, we headed over to Rocco’s Tacos and Tequila Bar, and saw that people were starting to roll into the restaurants and bars and the scene was getting livelier. Since we’d had a rather long day at that point, after dinner we took the Uber back to our hotel in Ft. Lauderdale and hit the sack early, so we would be well rested for our last day’s excursions.
South Beach, Miami
On our third day, we took an Uber for a one hour long drive south to Miami’s South Beach. We were dropped off at the Front Porch Café where we got some brunch. I wished however that we had waited, and gotten brunch at the numerous restaurants lining Ocean Drive.
Ocean Drive
This famous street is lined with bright and colorful art deco hotels and is therefore named the “Art Deco Historic District”. We walked down it along with others walking or biking along.
You’ll see famous hotels like the The Colony Hotel….
Or the The Breakwater.
South Pointe Park and Pier
We walked all the way to South Pointe Park and Pier. This is a nice area to hang out in, maybe catch a Speedboat Sightseeing Tour of Miami, sunbathe at South Pointe Beach, maybe get a steak dinner afterwards at the Smith and Wollensky steakhouse at South Pointe with stunning ocean views.
Joe’s Stone Crab
For us, we headed over to get lunch at the legendary Joe’s Stone Crab, which started as a small lunch counter in Miami in 1913 and is now a full fledged steakhouse with take out and delivery. We got the stone crab platter of course, enjoying the sweet and succulent crab along with sides of creamed spinach, a potato gratin that I could have eaten a plate of, and a dessert of key lime pie that I still crave.
There is a lot more to explore in the South Beach section of Miami, such as Espanola Way, a historic Spanish pedestrian district with lots of restaurants, markets and events, or do some shopping at the Lincoln Road Shopping District, an outdoor pedestrian promenade with over 200 shops, cafes and galleries. However, we had seen a lot in three days, so we decided to head back to Ft. Lauderdale for a quiet dinner at our hotel for our last night.
You may say to yourself, but you went to a beach, did you not spend any time on the beach? Actually, it was rather hot during the end of May at over 90 degrees Fahrenheit and for me that is too hot to spend too much time on the beach. On our last day however, once we got back to Ft. Lauderdale I did grab a towel from the hotel’s pool cabana and lay down on the sand on the strip of beach in front of the hotel. It was already 5pm at that point but still hours away from sunset. I lay stretched on my side, eyes closed, dozing a pleasant hour or so away, warmed from the rays of the late afternoon sun. It was the perfect, dreamy and beachy last-day experience, and left me wishing I lived near the beach and could have more late afternoons like that.
For dinner we had a great meal at the hotel’s restaurant, Lona. It was a meal of freshly made chips and guacamole, chicken enchiladas and margaritas to toast the sunset. It was the perfect end to our three day south of Florida extravaganza.
The next morning we got up early in time to catch the sunrise over the Atlantic ocean.
With these beautiful vistas in mind, we bade farewell to Florida, only to look forward to an expeditious return.
Date of trip: May 2024
The Full Itinerary 